When she finally crashed down to Earth, she found both Matt and Ryan grinning at her. And Ryan had climaxed too, wiping his stomach up with a tissue, she noticed with an odd burst of giddiness. He saw her watching, and laughed softly. “Couldn’t help myself,” he confessed.
She returned the laugh, though hers was kind of shaky. She was still stunned by what just happened. Matt gently climbed off her, his impressive chest glossy with perspiration, his mouth sporting a crooked grin. “That was…unexpected,” he finally said, starting to laugh too.
Annabelle felt strangely modest as she found her shorts and top and hurriedly got dressed. “Um, yeah…so…” her voice trailed off. What did one say in these situations anyway? Thanks for doing me, Matt? It was nice to meet you?
Fortunately, Ryan knew exactly what to say. “So, Rambo one or Rambo two?”
“I can’t believe I did that,” Annabelle murmured several hours later, as the two of them settled under the covers of Christina’s bed.
Ryan hid a smile. He was still surprised too, though from the moment he’d met her, he’d known Annabelle possessed a wild side. What did surprise him was the way he’d felt while watching his best friend screw her brains out. It hadn’t been jealousy, per se. More like…protectiveness. Matt had the tendency to be rough, and Annabelle had looked so small and vulnerable lying there. For a moment Ryan had been tempted to whisk her in his arms and tell Matt to back off, but in the end he let it happen. Annabelle needed to have fun, to let loose and realize that sex didn’t have to be so boring. He wanted to show her how good it could be when you let go. He suspected her ex didn’t let go much. The guy sounded like a total douchebag, in fact.
“You had fun, no?” he teased.
She snuggled closer, making a contented sound. “Yeah, but this is more fun. I like sleeping with you.”
“Me too,” he said, surprised by how much he meant those words. He did like it, though, holding her in his arms, listening to her soft breathing, feeling her warm breath against his bare chest.
“Ryan, can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“Why did you join the Navy?” She nestled her head against his shoulder. “I mean, you’re obviously in awesome physical shape, but it’s weird, I can’t see you taking orders. You’re so impulsive and kind of wild, and the military is so strict. I can’t picture you following the rules.”
“Why did I join the Navy…” he echoed, letting his voice trail. “Honestly? I just wanted to get the f**k away from my parents.”
“Bad childhood?” she said, sounding sympathetic.
“You could say that.” He let out a heavy breath. “Neither of them wanted me, I was a total accident, and the two of them hated each other. I don’t even know why they’re still married.”
“I’m sure they love you,” she said softly.
“Sometimes I wonder.” He swallowed. “My mother never said a nice word to me, my entire life. She’s stuck in her own miserable world, constantly whining about how terrible her life ended up. My dad just yells a lot. He never beat either of us, but I swear, sometimes I could see him thinking about it, just kicking the shit out of her so she’d stop complaining.”
Annabelle sounded horrified. “That’s awful, Ryan.”
He shrugged, and the movement sent a strand of her brown hair onto his chin. He grasped the lock of hair between his fingers, twining it gently. “It wasn’t that bad. I was your typical troublemaker as a kid, and I tried to be out of the house whenever I could. And when I was there, I learned to ignore all the yelling and bitching and drinking. We were dirt-poor, too, and kids at school constantly made fun of me for showing up in clothes with holes in them or not bringing a lunch. Don’t worry, I used to beat them up whenever they started up, and eventually they knew better.”
A sigh slipped out of his throat. “My grades weren’t that great, so college wasn’t an option—not that we had the money for it anyway—so when I turned eighteen, I enlisted.” He grinned in the darkness. “I’d always loved the water, so I figured the Navy would be the most fun of all the military branches.”
“And you became a SEAL,” she finished. “And now you go all over the world on dangerous assignments and risk getting killed.”
“Pretty much, yeah.”
She lifted her head and met his eyes. “So how does it work? You get a call telling you to pack up and then you leave the country?”
“Pretty much,” he said again. “I’m on leave for three weeks, though, all of us are, so don’t worry, I won’t be getting any late night calls.”
“Unless another one of your friends is having a baby,” she said dryly.
“Jane and Mackenzie are only in their first trimester, so I think we’re safe.”
“I like Jane. She was really cool.”
A wave of discomfort swelled in his gut. Shit. Why had he brought up Jane’s name? Just the sound of it made him cringe a little, mostly because he hated himself for these ridiculous feelings he had for the woman.
“Is something going on with you two?” Annabelle asked, her voice wary.
“Me and Jane? Of course not,” he replied. “She’s marrying my Lieutenant.”
Annabelle was quiet for a moment, and then, sounding very perceptive, she said, “You have a little thing for her, don’t you? I kind of suspected at the hospital, when I saw you talking to her, but I wasn’t sure, not until now anyway.”